Let's Discuss our Standards.

[Ether]

All players of an RP, upon participating, has an expectation of how the RP should go. Some expect activity, some expect deep collaborating between players, some wish for the ever-illusive coherent narrative. The GM, too, has his/her own plans, the grand vision of how the RP will play out, and the fun that the players will hopefully have by the end of it.

To that end, everyone has standards for posting IC. Roleplayer Guild's system divides it into three, and within each there are high/low implicit standards. The question in this thread is: What standards do you, as GMs, impose on your players, mentioned or not? Players, how do you feel about GM-imposed restrictions on paragraph length and other aspects of IC? What do you expect from other players?

Perhaps the viewpoints shared in this thread can help some people to achieve understanding on what are expected of players and GMs alike, and enhance the experience for everyone involved.

[Vilageidiotx]

I don't force paragraph length so much as I do detail. It seems that, if you require people to add some descriptions and explain what they are doing with more than simple "X does Y" sentences, the paragraph length will fall into place as it should.

Other than that, I mostly enforce consistency within the story. So long as what you are doing can be justified in a way that isn't just "This way I win.", then I will probably be fine with it.

[Raxacoricofallapatorius]

As I mentioned in another OT thread I think that a lot of Casual RPs technically fall into the Advanced category as far as post length and character/plot development so while I mostly RP in Casual I usually end up with a group of players who would easily qualify for advanced, but I feel like a lot of good RPers are intimidated by the "Advanced" roleplays and play it safe by sticking to "high casual".

What I look for most when I'm GMing (and what I try to do in other RPs I participate in) is player collaboration, especially in the area of developing character relationships (too often there's that one awkward character who can't seem to make any connections) and since roleplay is pretty character-driven in general I think it's really healthy for the game overall.

One thing I like to do when it comes to accepting characters: I'll give the interested players a CS and have them PM their character(s) to me first, and not posting it in the character thread until I've approved it. Just something I like to do, I think it promotes individuality since no one gets to see each others' characters until I say. It even works in RPs where certain roles need to be filled in the cast. Also, it gives you an opportunity to critique the characters privately and no one suffers the embarrassment of being turned away after posting their character for everyone to see.

I expect people to put effort into developing the story and their characters, as long as they can do that with quality writing skills post length doesn't really matter to me.

[Mortimer]

I have some standards when it comes to RPing. I especially enjoy 1x1, so I tend to look the other way when I work in groups because there is always the black sheep who does not meet my expectations.

The first one has to be godmodding. I hate it with all my soul. It is totally cringeworthy when a person takes control of not only his character, but also yours and every NPC around just to wreck havoc. The moment a person starts Godmodding, I know it will not work because once you learned to RP with godmodding in your mind, it is hard to take it out.

Secondly,

Other than that, I mostly enforce consistency within the story. So long as what you are doing can be justified in a way that isn't just "This way I win.", then I will probably be fine with it.

@Vilageidiotx

This to the extreme. I had a partner who would always have her characters run around reasonless-ly trying to disrupt the continuity of the story, and that irked me. Not once, but twice. Sadly, the girl was too sensitive when I faced her over this. Consistency is a must.

Then, we have grammar. Were the grammar Nazis to exist as a political party, I'd be the führer. I do not like grammar mistakes, but I have learned to tolerate them and cope with them for the reason that most people here do not care that much about grammar, so in my request thread I state that I am no a grammar Nazi just for the sake of having more appliants. But yes, grammar mistakes kill my brain cells. Not so much about typos, we all make mistakes when typing, so that is really excusable.

One-liners are also really turn offs for me. I hate them with a passion, especially if you write a full paragraph and the person 'one-lines you'. I have finished RPs for this same reason.

Finally, manners. We all make mistakes, and I am a VERY forgiving person. And I am really serious. I never get angry because I am not a violent person. Although I do lose my temper, there has to be extreme cases. But really, if you are going to be absent, please let me know. There is this girl who I was RPing with who just vanished 20 days ago. No warning, nothing.

RPing is a delicate thing, I must say.

[Darcs]

What standards do you, as GMs, impose on your players, mentioned or not? Players, how do you feel about GM-imposed restrictions on paragraph length and other aspects of IC? What do you expect from other players?

@Ether

Just remember to enjoy yourself and that this isn't that serious.

I mean we're basically just collectively writing fanfictions that mostly don't ever get finished, or read at all-- there's definitely some philosophical statement in observation. Something to do with pure passion and enjoyment or whatever. Because that's all it is, people enjoying their things together. Just go to people with similar standards and enjoy your thing.

I personally am at the point where I really don't have many, I like quality, but it's a pretty transient subjective quality that isn't hard to reach. Other than that I don't see the point in freaking out about specifics of what I want from other people too much.

I just want a Slice-of-Life/Romance Fallout RP and maybe a few 1x1s to last jesus dick

[Jig]

My requirements as a GM:

• General proper spelling and grammar. There isn't really an excuse, especially in the Advanced Section, which specifically stipulates SPaG. If I see a character application that clearly hasn't even been run through a spellchecker, I immediately put my shades on (so I can take a dim view of the player).
• Being up-front about when they can (or can't) post. I'm happy to wait; RL always comes first.
• Not being a dick. If I see somebody behaving belligerently on these boards and they want in on my game, tough titties to them. Speaking to one another with respect is a basic. I won't put up with anything less and I won't inflict assholes on my players.
• 'Getting' the game in question. It's kinda hard to measure, but sometimes you read a character application that suggests the player doesn't 'get' the game, whether it's because they don't know enough about the source (in fandom games) or because they seem to have a particular interpretation of it that just... isn't what the game is.
• Characters with purpose. It can be anything, from the bleedingly obvious (Defeat the bad guy of the story) to the more tangential (Become rich could work in the same setting), but I really try to sniff out characters that are basically excuses for the player to explore whatever world the game's set in.
• Thinking about other people's characters. I love it when players work together to help one another tell their own stories and deliberately putting their characters in situations that will facilitate the development of somebody else's character. It's totally metagaming, but I don't like to think of RPing as a 'game' which can be 'won' but rather stories to be told from many angles.

I don't even mention things like being OP or godmoding because I normally block people from being OP by inspecting the character sheet and godmoding is so universally derided that it's a waste of pixels telling people yet again not to do it.

Looking back at this list, I must seem like an absolute monster. I don't think I am.

_{I hope not.}

The only one that's measurable is proper SPaG, and the rest of it is generally a gut feeling. I will reject a player only if I'm absolutely certain that I can't work with them.

[NuttsnBolts]

@Jig Reading through your list and I'm agreeing with many of those points for being a GM.

Getting' the game in question. It's kinda hard to measure, but sometimes you read a character application that suggests the player doesn't 'get' the game, whether it's because they don't know enough about the source (in fandom games) or because they seem to have a particular interpretation of it that just... isn't what the game is.

[Comment Removed]

When it comes to standards I have a particular way I like to see things and those two happened to nail it perfectly. The hard part I'm finding is getting people to understand that level that I'm after and all too often I see in RPs these people have no fore thought on what they are doing or where they are going to take their characters.

Lil rant, but a 33% success ratio isn't enjoyable.

[Jig]

all too often I see in RPs these people have no fore thought on what they are doing or where they are going to take their characters.

@NuttsnBolts

I notice this as well, but it's hard to stipulate as a requirement.

[Vilageidiotx]

It isn't a bad idea to ask somebody who is picking up an awkward character to thing about what they are doing.

[Jig]

It isn't a bad idea to ask somebody who is picking up an awkward character to thing about what they are doing.

@Vilageidiotx

It's not, but, if I'm convinced they... aren't the sort of person to think about what they're doing, then I don't think they're the right player for my game anyway. If somebody is going to pitch an awkward character, I kinda expect them to qualify them with a 'would this sort of thing work?', rather than just assuming that whatever curveball they've thrown me is definitely cool on its own terms.

[Rilla]

Small rule: Play to your level. If you aren't up to advanced, or somewhat of an average of what everyone else is posting(insofaras not being the low outlier), then don't try it.

Big rule: Don't try and get shit under my radar. If I catch you doing it, you're done. Mainly because I know how things generally should work, and I hate it when people try and circumvent things with loopholes and stuff. You get the general idea, don't try and be the guy that gets it, and tries to get around it, or bring it up to show that.. 'I know ways around this.'

[Jig]

then don't try it.

@Rilla

That seems a shame. If somebody's a bit of a newb but willing to learn (and seems to have a reasonable chance of attaining a given game's higher standard), I don't feel that they should be discouraged.

Big rule: Don't try and get shit under my radar. If I catch you doing it, you're done. Mainly because I know how things generally should work, and I hate it when people try and circumvent things with loopholes and stuff. You get the general idea, don't try and be the guy that gets it, and tries to get around it, or bring it up to show that.. 'I know ways around this.'

I put these in the category of 'uncooperative'; players who seek to do what they want to do in spite of everybody else. I'm reminded of my unwritten rule that if somebody wants to challenge something in terms of content, they're more than welcome to put forward their case, but if I, as GM, say No, I expect that decision to be accepted and respected.

[vancexentan]

As a Gm:

I expect some thought to be put into the character and how he or she has been developed. I may be able to post a sheet of ridiculous size for a casual player in only a handful of hours if that but others don't have that level of skill or time on their hands. So to that end all I ask from my players is this: Have a character that's able to fit into the roleplay that isn't some poor cliche character and isn't a complete loner. Likewise posting requirements reflect my ideas about a couple paragraphs for the CS while in IC posting can vary but I like to see at the very least a paragraph and a half.

As a player:

As a player I only join roleplays where I can work together with the GM to form a coherent character that will fit into the roleplay. Likewise I don't want to be talked down to like a noob. I don't mind someone pointing out mistakes but when people start questioning how I post (long paragraphs and the like) that's when I start to get a bit annoyed. I will space things out if you ask me too and even shorten my posts or lengthen them. But do I REALLY need to explain to someone how my character isn't screaming when there is not a single exclamation point in the entire post? Likewise I want other players to follow the rules and don't try to shove themselves into the main character spot unless they are the current focal point in the roleplay. Someone dogging for the role as 'protagonist or main character' are people who don't understand other people don't join a roleplay to become a side character normally. The player characters should all get equal attention unless someone is specifically meant to be the center of attention in roleplay at the point in time.

[Rithy]

I don't normally GM, but I have some clear ideas about the RPs I join :P

For most RPs, especially new ones, I expect people to post at a frequent rate. At least once per day, or faster.

A RP's most important assets are its constituent players, and for a group of strangers to get together, learn to know each other and form an effective relation with one-another is going to require medium to high intensity interaction between the players, both in the IC and OOC space.

I don't like to be pushy, but I feel that if we're ever gonna make a fun and coherent RP, it's going to require a degree of personal commitment from the participating players.
it's just like any party or event IRL. If people aren't in it, showing up late, constantly distracted or otherwise not interested, then they quite frankly just end up damaging the event :(

And yes, some might classify me as the "psycho-poster" ^_^

[Gowi]

Small rule: Play to your level. If you aren't up to advanced, or somewhat of an average of what everyone else is posting(insofaras not being the low outlier), then don't try it.

@Rilla

See, I’m going to have to give this comment a big side of “Yeah, no.” Discouraging people from trying is ridiculous. For my entire time role-playing in the last fourteen years I can only imagine where I would be if I prescribed to the concept of “Don’t try it”. I can probably tell you where my writing would be and that would be in the damned gutter. People react to the writers around them, growing and improving as they see the expectations or standards of their peers posts to try to meet those same standards. I would have never made the jump to advanced and taken lead from my co-writers to bring my writing to an “advanced” level —and that’s only the most recent example.

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With that said I can go on to the topic question.

My standards vary with the game’s requirements. If I’m running a casual game I’m not going to expect deep characterization or long prose standards. That’s not to say I wouldn’t welcome it, but there’s a line I draw with leniency and expectations since whilst it is a cooperative story that is meant to be fun to be involved in I do think there should be a degree of quality concern. I like to work and play – it’s why I develop deep settings and look after it with a big red pen. Perhaps that’s the editor’s mindset that I have, but it is mind.

At the end of the day all I’m working is some effort into grammar/spelling/punctuation, a cooperative mindset, and a writer who doesn’t commit to power-playing or god-modding. I’m pretty easy to please... most of the time.

[Meth Quokka]

My personal opinion on people trying new 'standards' of roleplaying is Go for it. I can't stress that enough, we only really improve through trial and error experimentation with our writing; although not everyone is always necessarily after improving their writing. It's personal preference for how they enjoy their roleplaying but the main thing to do is that if you have a go, be prepared to put the effort in and stay on the right side of the writers around you.

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My personal standards as a roleplayer are really quite snobbish; I know there's the old adage of quality over quantity but what I really enjoy is the depth of a post/roleplay which only really comes with quality and quantity in my opinion. Grammar, imagery and a character's personal voice should all be part of a post's style and the content should fulfill some or all of:

• a) advancing the plot in a relevant way
• b) developing your character in an appropiate way
• c) developing a character relationship or
• d) subverting/manipulating the flow of the story (in freeform/sandbox roleplays)

People would probably call some of of my writing unnecessary fluff which they are perfectly entitled to think. I personally want to see the reasoning, the thoughts and emotions behind a character and their decisions. The writing shouldn't be about winning but that's not an easy thing to managed; subconsciously most of tend to find ourselves seeking a win, myself included. I think the best roleplays are a challenge to develop, should have intense collaboration between writers and characters and overall leaves you with a unique experience.

[Engel]

I was a GM for years before I joined this site, on a few different roleplays, but I don't think I'd want to try starting a group RP here. It seems like group RPs here have a much higher chance of dying than on my previous forum. Maybe it's just because there's more roleplayers here or something. Anyway, when I did GM I preferred people who could be active, even if they may not be as good at writing. It's detrimental to a group RP to have people that are barely there and only posts once in a while compared to the rest of the group. It often means people are left waiting for them to post which might end up slowing the whole RP down, even having it die. I often mentioned what kind of activity I wanted out of players, and yet somehow always got that one that didn't bother sticking to it. I liked to encourage collaborations too.

As a roleplayer my standards have gotten higher and higher over the years it seems. I don't like GMing anymore, because there's always that one person who manages to make it a chore for me rather than fun. I used to do a lot of group RPs too, but I find just following someone else's lead gets boring very fast. I like to have some creative control over what I write. It doesn't really help that some of the groups I've joined lately have had people who feel the need to make their characters the strongest no matter what, players who just mimick what I do or has a bad GM that's plain rude. I find 1x1 RPs the best when they're actually good, but those are not easy to find for me either. I do get more creative control in a 1x1 RP though, and with a good partner it's still as fun as other forms of RPs used to be for me.